Park of Chengdu People
The Park of Chengdu People, which is indeed the most popular park in the Sichuan District capital of Chengdu, could not have been given a better name since it is indeed the park of the people.
The Chengdu People's Park gains its popularity partially from the visiting tourists, but mainly from the locals which the tourists tend to emulate, who have embraced the park and made it their own, frequenting it in their numbers and various local ethnicities.
This is where the locals come to just be themselves, relax and even mingle naturally, making it a great place for outsiders to experience a part of the local Chinese culture in its purest and most natural form, in the absence of too much of a focus on offering goods and services to tourists and this is probably the main pulling factor for tourists and locals alike, one of the few places of that nature, if not the only one for miles in every direction.
Highlights
Not only is the Chengdu People's Park a great place for the locals and visitors to express themselves, it also carries a lot of historical significance, since this is indeed the famous site of one of the events which led to the collapse of the Qing dynasty, after the 1911 protests against the outsourcing of the railway construction projects to foreigners.
So, while one enjoys the sight of all walks of Chengdu life in the park, they can reflect on a bit of history that solidified this place as a major gathering point for entire families.
For the romantics at heart, or those simply travelling in pairs, the round-the-lake boat trip for two should be considered, since it offers a great way to explore the various on-goings naturally.
Sometimes fees apply when there is a special event taking place, but even then the admission never goes higher than 8-10 Yuan, often as low as 2 Yuan.
How to Get There
A taxi cab from just about any part of the city will get you to the Park of Chengdu People for about 15 Yuan, otherwise about four busses take it in turns to cycle passed the main entrance, all day; Buses 45, 54, 61 and 113.
The park is also within walking distance from Tianfu Guangchang, so some exercise could be in order if you're based around there.
